Acetylene-gas lamp.



No. 655,840. Patented Aug. l4, I900. J. H. .VAN TASSEL& U. P. HIPPLE. ACETYLENE GAS LAMP.

(Application filed May 18, 1.899.)

(No Model.)

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STATES JAMES H. VAN TASSEL AND OLIVER P. HIPPLE, OF ELMIRA, NEWV YORK.

ACETYLEN E -G AS LAMP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 5,840, dated August 14, 1900.

Application filed May 13, 1899. serial No. 716,766. (No model.)

To all whom, it may cmwcrn:

Be it known that we, JAMES H. VAN TASSEL and OLIVER P. HIPPLE, citizens of the United States, residing at Elmira, in the county of Chemung and State of New'York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Acetylene-Gas Lamps; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the figures of reference marked thereon,which form a part of this specification.

Our invention relates to acetylene gas lamps; and its primary object is to provide a lamp of this character which will be especially well adapted for use as a bicycle-lamp, although not restricted, of course, to that par ticular use.

The invention aims to provide a simple and inexpensive acetylenedamp which will be selfregulating and so constructed as to be readily charged and cleaned and capable of generating and supplying to its burner a gas of superior quality.

The novel features of the invention will be fully described'hereinafter and clearly de-. fined in the appended claims, in connection with the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a lamp embodying our invention, and Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof.

The reference-numeral l designates a cylindrical shell or casing externally screwthreaded at its lower end and closed by a head 2, formed with an annular vertical flange 3,

which is internally threaded to engage the threads of the casing. The casing is divided by horizontal flanged partitions 4: and 5 into three compartments 6, 7, and 8, constituting, respectively, a generator-chamber, a waterchamber, and a light-chamber. Within the lower compartment 6 is located a box or holder 9 for containing calcium carbid. The bottom of this carbid-holder is formed with a central opening to fit over a screw 10, which extends through a central opening in the head 2 and has its head soldered or otherwise permanently secured within a beveled seat 11,

jup the openings therein. the tube 13 extends through a central opening in the cover 12, and within said tube is suspended a perforated water-supply pipe 16,

formed in the head 2.

The top of the carbidholder is closed by a cover 12.

13 designates a tubular casin g arranged centrally within the carbid-holder and closed at its lower end bya plug 14, which is centrally bored and threaded to fit the screw 10. The tube 13 is perforated for the passage of water therethrough and surrounded by a covering 15, of Wire-gauze, to prevent the particles of carbid from adhering to the tube or stopping The upper end of the upper end of which extends through the partition 4: and is secured within an opening in a diaphragm 17 located above the partition 1 and parallel thereto. Between the partition 4 and diaphragm 17 the main casingis formed with a series of ventilating-openings 18.

; The compartment 7 constitutes the waterchar'eber of the lamp, provided with a fillingtube 19, the upper end of which is closed by a screw-cap 20, having an air-hole 21 to facilitate the downward feed of water. Resting upon the diaphragm 17, which forms the bottom'of the water-chamber, is a horizontally-arranged valve-casing formed with a water-inlet 22, and an outlet 23, the latter registering with the upper end of the waterfeed pipe 16 and the former being controlled by a needle-valve 24, fitting the conical seat of the valve-casing, and having a screw-stem 25 and handle'26, the valve-casing being inhereinafter explained.

28 designates a gas-supply pipe the upper end of which extends through an opening in the partition 5 to register with a burner tube or thimble 29. The body of the pipe is inclined toward the side of the casing, and its lower end extends down through the bottom of the water-chamber and through the partition 4: to connect with a gas-passage 30, formed by a pressed plate 31, soldered to the wall of the casin g, and closed at its lower end by a filtering-plug 32, of sponge, felt, or like material, which serves to filter and purify the gas in its upward passage. The plate 31 is of curved or circular shape in cross-section and enlarged at its upper end to form a chamber 31, into which the lower end of the pipe 28 projects. The upper edge of the enlarged portion of the plate 31 is formed with a horizontal flange 31", which is soldered to the under side of the partition 4, the vertical edges of the plate being soldered to the wall of the casing, as above stated. This construction enables the parts to be assembled in proper relative positions without any fitting or special connection between the lower end of the pipe 28 and the gas-passage 30, and the chamber 31 afiords a free feed of the gas upward through the pipe 28 to the burner.

Within the tube or thimble 29 is located a burner 33, preferably a double burner of the form shown. In rear of the burner 33 within the light-chamber Sis secured a reflector 34, andmin front of said burner is a lens-holder 35,supportingby any suit-able means alens 36.

37 designates draft-openings formed in the casing just above the partition 5, and the upper end of the light-chamber 8 is closed by a'dome 38, formed with ventilating-openings 39. The light-chamber isalso preferably provided with side openings containing colored andornamented glass 40, as is common in bicycle-lanterns.

Agasket 41, of rubber or like yielding material, is interposed between the bottom of the carbid-holder and head 2.

42 designates parallel lugs projecting from the casing for attaching the lamp to a bicycle.

The operation of the generator and lamp constructed as abovedescribed is as follows: The water under control of the valve feeds down through the supply-pipe 16 and percolatestherethrough to the tube 13, through the perforation ofwhich it passes to the carbid within the holder to generate the gas. The gasrises through the tube 13 and finds its way to the lower end of the passage 30, through which it rises to the pipe 28, from whence it passes to the burner, being filtered and purified in its passage through the filtering material 32. In case more water than is necessary'is supplied to the carbid-chamber, re-

allows such excess gas to pass up through the 5 5 A further advantage of our construction isthat the gas is carried down around the outside of the carbid-chamber on its way to the gas-passage, and is thus more or less heated, with the result that the gas is dried before being supplied to the gas-supply pipe and burner.

WVe claim 1. In an acetylene-gas lamp, the combination with a casing divided by horizontal partitions, of acarbid-holder in the lowermost compartment, a gas-passage arranged at one side of the carbid-holder and comprisinga plate secured to the wall of the casing and extending above and below the top of the carbid-holder, to cause the gas to be directed downwardly around said holder, and then upward to the burner-supply pipe, the lower end'of the latter extending into said gas-passage.

2. In an acetylene-gas lamp, the combination with a casing divided by horizontal-partitions, of a carbid-holder in the lowermost compartment, a gas-passage arranged at one side of the carbid-holder and comprising a plate secured to the wall of the casing and to the under side of the adjacent horizontal partition, and enlarged at its upper end to form a gas-chamber and a burner-supply pipe the lower end of which extends through said partition and projects into said gas-chamber.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES H. VAN TASSEL. OLIVER P. HIPPLE.

Witnesses:

G. H. GREIN, J. O. FERGUSON. 

